Gwynedd Council
|
Gwynedd Council Cyngor Gwynedd |
|
|---|---|
| 1st unitary term | |
 |
|
| Type | |
| Type | |
| Structure | |
|
37 / 74
|
|
|
18 / 74
|
|
|
13 / 74
|
|
|
4 / 74
|
|
|
2 / 74
|
|
| Elections | |
| First past the post | |
|
Last election
|
2012 |
Gwynedd Council (Welsh: Cyngor Gwynedd) is the governing body for the principal area of Gwynedd, one of the subdivisions of Wales within the United Kingdom. It is the only UK council where the administrative work is not conducted in English - the entirety of its internal work is conducted through the medium of Welsh.
The present local government area of Gwynedd is made up of the ancient counties of Caernarfonshire and Merionethshire. These counties alongside Anglesey were merged in 1974 to create a much larger local government area called "Gwynedd" after the medieval kingdom of the same name. The governing body of this area was called Gwynedd County Council.
The present governing body was formed following the local government reorganisation in Wales in 1996 which recommended the separation of Anglesey, the abolition of Gwynedd and the creation of the new "County of Caernarfonshire and Merionethshire". This proposal was clearly unpopular because one of the first acts of this new authority was to rename itself Gwynedd Council. The first elections were held in 1995
Controversy erupted in mid-winter 2001 when Seimon Glyn, Gwynedd Council's housing committee chairman and Plaid Cymru member, voiced frustration over "English immigrants" moving into traditionally Welsh speaking communities. Glyn was commenting on a report underscoring the dilemma of rocketing house prices outstripping what locals could pay, with the report warning that '...traditional Welsh communities could die out..." as a consequence.
Much of the rural Welsh real estate market was driven by buyers looking for second homes for use as holiday homes, or for retirement. Many buyers were drawn to Wales from England because of relatively low house prices in Wales as compared to house prices in England. The rise in home prices outpaced the average earnings in Wales and meant that many local people could not afford to purchase their first home.
In 2001 nearly a third of all purchases of properties in Gwynedd were by buyers from out of the county, with some communities reporting as many as a third of local homes used as holiday homes. Holiday home owners typically spend less than six months of the year in the local community.
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Wikipedia